The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1887-01-15
The Comptrollor's Report.


Mr.. j. Frank Turner, the Comp
troller of the Treasury, has submit
ted his report to the Governor, and
it has been published in the Balti-
more Sun and the american. The
printed copies have not yet been dis
tributed. which contain the tables
and statements, so that a complete
understanding of it in all its details
cannot now be had. Hereafter we
may have occasion to examine it
more at length and make some com.
parsons with former reports. The
Baltimore Sun In its last Tuesdays
issue says the report "makes a salts
factory exhibit of the State finance ,,
and then says, "it shows that not
ioithstanding the business depression.
the State revenue has about equoled
the Average during the past nine
gears"
In other words, that notwithstand-
ing the depreciation of real estate
that farmers must sell their wheat at
seventy or eighty cents per bushel-
that labor is scarce and wages re-
duced, and there must he economy
and curtailment in every business,
yet the State taxes are not reduced
and because the people are oppressed
hs1P 80 A..
the State finances are in a satisfactory
condition.
This we claim is the grievance of
the people. They must toll and
labor. must economize and deny
themselves of almost the necessaries
of life, yet their tax.bills are the
same as when all were prosperous,
wheat high, land high, labor plenty
and wages reasonable. The Comp.
troller partly gives the reason why
the taxes are not reduced, when he
says in his report that "in January,
1884, ache1 l became COMPTROLLER, /
found that no Investment had been
made on account Of the Deaf and
Dumb and Maryland Hospital loans.
The Legislature had othera0iSe oppro
prtoted funds applicable to that pur.
pose" That is money which the
taxpayers have paid, to pay the in.
terest and principal of the several
loans and which the Constitution of
The State says shall not be applied to
any other purpose, has been. con.
trary to the Constitution and the
laws, spent in jobs and other things.
1t would have been very satisfactory
could the Comptroller have specified
the unauthorized expenditures OF
these funds by the Legislature so
that the same may not be repeated
by future Legislatures, or if done
that our future Treasury officers
might be warned against regarding
them.
The Comptroller seems to take
great credit to himself in refunding
the debt at lower rate of Interest.
Refunding at lower rate does not
pay the debt nor are the taxes re-
duced. AS we have always main.
tanned. the people have paid the debt
already and instead Of the officers
cancelling the State obligations. they
pay + per cent. interest upon them
as long as they can and then refund
them at lower rate of interest-but
the taxes are all the same-no reduc.
tien. The very refunding act which
Is generally regarded as Mr.. Turner's
measure continues the taxes the
same. He promises a reduction in
the future. provided the Legislature
Is economical. We heard of reduc-
ton of taxes before, but it never
comes. The late Robert Fowler in
1870 spoke of the assets of the State
being equal, or nearly so, to its liza
bilities. There should to-day be no
State tax except ten cents for the
public schools; instead of that il is
49, and the debts which have been
refunded should have been paid. {
These facts the people should know. |
Taxes are the FIRST lien upon every